


Breathe

by mytinystars



Series: Figure Skating Slices of Life [5]
Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Hurt Yoo Kihyun, Injured Yoo Kihyun, M/M, Mentioned Jeon Jungkook, Mentioned Jung Hoseok | J-Hope, Mentioned Kim Namjoon | RM, Mentioned Kim Taehyung | V, Mentioned Min Yoongi | Suga, Not bloody but a little graphic, Sad Son Hyunwoo | Shownu, Sad Yoo Kihyun, Showki, alternate universe - figure skating, ankle injury, i promise showki fluff is coming soon, just hang in there, knee injury, this is sad but i promise fluff will happen eventually, this is the injury that ends Kihyun's career, trigger warning for injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-08
Updated: 2019-11-08
Packaged: 2021-01-25 18:02:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21360385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mytinystars/pseuds/mytinystars
Summary: Kihyun injures himself.[As of 07/13/2020, this has been heavily edited and rewritten.]
Relationships: Son Hyunwoo | Shownu/Yoo Kihyun
Series: Figure Skating Slices of Life [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1531790
Comments: 7
Kudos: 63





	Breathe

**Author's Note:**

> I promise showki fluff is coming up soon just hang in there

_ **Off season. Early August, 2015.** _

As the bright, fast, peppy instrumental music comes to a close, the last notes echoing in the dance studio, the familiar sound of blades tearing into the ice in the rink outside the studio fill Hyunwoo’s ears. Jungkook is having some one-on-one ice time with Jiyong while the rest of the pupils at the rink have a stretching class with Yoongi, and currently Hyunwoo and J-hope, the official choreographers of the rink, are holed away in their dance studio, crafting Changkyun’s newest exhibition routine. 

Hyunwoo scratches his head as he reviews the notes he and J-hope had come up with, and J-hope dances to the footwork sequence a few paces away. Changkyun is more of a slower skater; he likes performing to romantic and sensual music with guitar and strings. This particular exhibition piece, though, is supposed to be fast and fun, something unusual for the younger skate. J-hope seems to have full confidence that Changkyun can pull it off, but Hyunwoo struggles to try to imagine Changkyun performing the routine he and J-hope had spent all morning making. Don’t get Hyunwoo wrong, he definitely does not doubt Changkyun’s abilities. It’s just that he’s so used to watching Changkyun glide easily across the ice, smooth and almost sexual. It’ll be interesting to see how the teenager will adapt to such a robust routine.

A fast and explosive routine for Changkyun hadn’t been J-hope or Hyunwoo’s idea. That particular credit went to Jiyong. Changkyun has been skating with them for a little over two years, and after he took gold in his first competition under Jiyong and Yoongi’s training, Jiyong wanted to see what else the talented teenager could do. Hyunwoo and J-hope have been instructed to make Changkyun’s exhibition piece vigorous and peppy, and full of life and flavor. 

They take the routine papers to Jiyong as Jungkook is getting off the ice, pulling his blade covers on and sipping from his water bottle off to the side. Jiyong, in the middle of checking his phone, glances up at J-hope and Hyunwoo as they approach and smile at them.

“Ah, done?” He asks, grinning when Hyunwoo nods. “All right then, let’s see what you’ve got.”

So they take Jiyong through the routine, step by step. Jiyong is definitely a visual learner and teacher, and as they talk him through the routine, he dances along to it, visualizing it for himself. 

The routine is more dancing than jumping or spinning. It’s only an exhibition piece, so there’s no requirements for any jumps or spins, and the jumps that J-hope and Hyunwoo have lined up for Changkyun’s routine are his famous quadruple salchow, a triple lutz-triple toe, and a triple axel. As the official choreographers for a rink full of boys, their jobs aren’t easy, but Hyunwoo and J-hope pride themselves on knowing what each and every skater is capable of, and what their favorite moves are. 

Jiyong nods along thoughtfully, carefully inspecting each skill listed on the paper, from the jumps to the spins right down to the beginning and ending poses.

“These jumps are his favorites, so I think he’ll be good with it,” Jiyong says. “But I’ll check in with him. It’s his routine, after all, and it’s an exhibition.”

Hyunwoo nods; he’s used to that. Jiyong is an interesting coach. He usually lets his skaters pick their own music and once he approves it, he lets J-hope and Hyunwoo take over. Once the basic draft of the performance is on paper and Jiyong has a chance to do it himself to get a feel for it, the final decisions of jumps and spins come when the skater himself is introduced to the routine and he decides what he wants to perform, and little tweaks are made to the routines the closer they get to competition. It’s a long and kind of inconveniencing process, but it’s how Jiyong has always done things, and it’s an effective method of making sure the performance belongs to the skater, too.

“Alright, then,” Jiyong sighs, flashing the two men a smile. “Thanks again. Another great routine. I’ll work it through with Changkyun and we’ll go from there, alright?”

“No problem,” J-hope grins his heart-shaped grin and both he and Hyunwoo bow respectfully to the older skater. 

They back away from the rink’s edge as Jiyong steps off the ice and pulls his blade guards on. If Hyunwoo recalls correctly, Seokjin will spend the next hour and a half in one of three dance studios with their younger skaters—including Jimin, Taehyung, Changkyun, and Jungkook—while Yoongi and Jiyong have ice time with the older skaters—Namjoon, Kihyun, Hoseok, Hyungwon, Jooheon, and Minhyuk. Hyunwoo and J-hope will have to retreat back to their dance studio to continue choreographing; Jooheon and Kihyun both still need exhibition pieces, and Namjoon’s short program is kind of up in the air. 

With Changkyun’s piece in hand, Jiyong disappears down the hall, and J-hope holds his hand up for a high five. Hyunwoo smirks as they clap their hands together. He really is excited to see Changkyun skate.

Watching the skaters practice and perform is something Hyunwoo genuinely loves to do. He considers it a true treasure to watch routines he choreographed be brought to life, dominated on the ice, and become the work of art of the skater. He’s among the older workers at the rink—out of him, Seokjin, Yoongi, Jiyong, and J-hope, the youngest is J-hope—and being able to witness the growth and development of young, talented skaters is what brings real pleasure to Hyunwoo’s life. That, and his fiancé, Kihyun.

While being able to watch Jiyong’s students perform and practice is something he treasures, nothing compares to watching Kihyun skate his heart out. Even when he’s not competing, Kihyun throws everything he has into every performance, and it’s always been the most special thing for Hyunwoo to witness. If Kihyun would let him, Hyunwoo could watch Kihyun skate for hours. He’d never take his eyes off his petite fiancé; he’d watch every movement, from the most grandiose jumps and spins to the smallest twitch of a hip or even a smirk. Every time he watches Kihyun step onto the shimmering blue ice, his heart sings for him a little more, as if it isn’t impossible for him to love Kihyun any more than he already does.

The downside is, he usually has to watch Kihyun’s performances, whether full dress rehearsal or just practice, in secret. Kihyun enjoys the spotlight and loves the feeling of everyone’s eyes on him, but for whatever reason, he doesn’t like when Hyunwoo watches him. It’s strange, and Hyunwoo has brought it up before, trying to find out what the problem is, but all he’s ever gotten in response is the flushing of Kihyun’s cheeks and a head turned furiously away. Eventually Hyunwoo stopped asking and just resorted to watching his fiancé skate while hidden behind a corner, or from an office window. 

It used to bother Hyunwoo, a lot, but it doesn’t anymore. He doesn’t want to make Kihyun uncomfortable, and since Kihyun doesn’t like talking about it, he’s come to the conclusion that Kihyun doesn’t want Hyunwoo to watch him fail. He still gets to see Kihyun perform on television, decked out in makeup and a fantastic costume complete with rhinestones and sequins that make him all the more ethereal when he takes the ice. Kihyun becomes something else when he skates in competition; he’s like a swan, graceful and delicate yet dangerous and powerful. At the very least, even if it’s through a television screen, he gets to watch Kihyun dominate and win. And that’s enough for Hyunwoo.

Their relationship dynamic is something very parental, Hyunwoo has noticed. Jiyong, Seokjin and Yoongi have loads of students: there’s international competitors like Hoseok, Hyungwon, Namjoon, Jooheon, and the others, and there’s kids who haven’t yet made their senior debut and Hyunwoo only knows half their names. But everyone knows that he and Kihyun are engaged. 

Kihyun is twenty-two already—he’s not old at all, but compared to the other athletes he trains with, he's one of Jiyong’s oldest trainees, next to Hoseok, Namjoon, and Minhyuk. Kihyun has also been friends with Yoongi for at least half of a decade. Kihyun has been a pupil of Jiyong’s since he was eighteen, and was, along with Minhyuk, Hyungwon and Hoseok, one of Jiyong's very first pupils after the Seoul Magnolia Ice Club was opened. Yoongi joined the coaching staff aged 25 after a neck injury took him out of competition. Yoongi had been a former competitor of Jiyong's, and when the coach had heard of Yoongi's retirement, he'd offered the younger skater a position in the rink, and Yoongi had graciously accepted. Kihyun and Yoongi had been good friends from the get-go; as soon as they met, they hit it off.

The work is a lot for Yoongi, especially as he’s juggling coaching and being one of two official managers of the rink. That’s where Kihyun, ever so empathetic, steps in to aid Yoongi, staying at the rink after hours to help Yoongi with management paperwork and the like. Hyunwoo has high speculations that once Kihyun retires, he’ll probably work at the rink as a manager too, even if it’s only to help keep all the weight off of Yoongi’s back. 

Hyunwoo’s fond train of thought is interrupted by the clamour of older skaters slowly trickling back into the main ice area from the hallway Jiyong had disappeared into. Jiyong and Yoongi follow the older skaters in, and Hyunwoo notices Namjoon, Minhyuk and Hyungwon are limping slightly. Hyunwoo winces in sympathy; if he remembers right, they’ve just come back from stretching with Yoongi, and the retiree is notorious for being particularly harsh when it comes to flexibility. He’s known for being one of three male skaters in the entire world to have a perfectly hyperextended Biellmann position, and he tends to train his students the way he was trained.

In all honesty, Yoongi, Seokjin, and Jiyong are a pretty deadly combination of coaches. They’ve all been considered world-class skaters since they were about fifteen or sixteen. Yoongi won the World Championships three consecutive times, and Jiyong and Seokjin both have Olympic gold and silver medals. Hyunwoo has no doubt their pupils, especially the younger ones, will be just as good, if not better.

Hyunwoo feels his face twist into an unconscious smile when he sees Kihyun walking next to Minhyuk, with whom he’s engaged in conversation. Minhyuk glances over and makes eye contact with Hyunwoo and smiles in greeting, and then Kihyun turns his head to see who he’s smiling at, and Hyunwoo grins across the rink at both of them. 

“Kihyun, you’re skating first,” Jiyong calls from the main office, which is on the second story of the rink. Hyunwoo hadn’t even seen him go up there. “Get your music set up. I’ll be down to watch in a second.”

Kihyun gives him a thumbs up to let Jiyong know he’d been heard and sets off to do as he’s been told after saying a brief goodbye to Minhyuk. Hyunwoo watches his every movement, entranced by how Kihyun seems to flow and glide even when he isn't on the ice. 

“You’re whipped,” Jooheon’s voice catches Hyunwoo off guard. He turns sharply and sees the younger skater grinning at him cheekily a few steps away. “You can’t even look away from him for a second.”

Hyunwoo rolls his eyes but doesn’t answer, knowing Jooheon is right and that trying to debate with him won’t get Hyunwoo anywhere. He instead turns back to watching Kihyun prepare to skate. Jooheon laughs smugly.

“Fine, you’re right,” Hyunwoo admits, because why would he lie about loving his fiancé? “He’s adorable and cute and like a mom to all you youngsters. And he’s talented and powerful and—”

“Whipped.”

Hyunwoo rolled his eyes again, this time letting a smile split his lips. “Why would I deny loving my fiancé? We’re getting married next April.”

Jooheon gasps. “You finally picked a date? When?”

“Well, not exactly. But Kihyun wants a spring wedding,” Hyunwoo says, and Jooheon joins him at the edge of the rink. 

“Ah, see? You’re so whipped you’re letting him dominate your wedding.” He says.

“Whatever Kihyun wants, he gets,” Hyunwoo laughs and he and Jooheon turn their attention to Kihyun as he finishes tying his laces and glides out onto the ice.

“Yo, Shownu!”

Hyunwoo turns his head. J-hope stands close to the hallway, one arm up to get his attention.

“I’ll get started on Joo’s piece, okay?” J-hope calls, and Hyunwoo gives him a thumbs up and watches as J-hope retreats into the hallway. He appreciates J-hope letting him watch Kihyun skate, and he’s even more pleasantly surprised to see that Kihyun isn’t making him leave.

Jiyong is making his way down the stairs by the time Kihyun stops in his beginning pose in the center of the rink, and the older skater raises his hand up to signal to Minhyuk, who is standing patiently by the radio, to begin the music. The first keys of Kihyun’s music play and then he’s off.

Kihyun, like Changkyun, is more of a slower skater, with a sensual undertone and easy movements that blend together to make the perfect routine for someone like him. This piece isn’t much different: it has a Latin feel to it, it’s sweet and melodramatic and drips with hidden desire. In Hyunwoo’s honest opinion, it’s perfect for someone with passion that burns like a candel in someone’s chest, just waiting to blaze into leaping tongues of flame that scream energy and power. It’s perfect for someone like Kihyun. 

Kihyun’s step sequence, contrary to the rest of his routine, is sharp and fast, with clipped movements and fiesty kicks and twizzles. He executes each twist and twitch excellently; he moves like fluid, his body reflecting all the time he’s spent perfecting each and every individual motion. 

His first three jumps are flawless. His opening triple axel-double toe loop combination is technically perfect—he’s always had excellent jumping technique. He lands his next jump sequence, a triple loop-triple loop with a slight wobble, but it’s otherwise gorgeous. His next jump, a quadruple flip-double toe, he lands with stunning accuracy and cleanliness, his skate kicking up shards of ice as he touches down. He’s on a roll.

And then he goes for his quadruple lutz. 

It happens too fast. The jump is doomed from the start; his right knee buckles as he stabs the ice with his toepick and pushes off into the air. The lutz is high in the air but tilted due to his messy takeoff, so instead of twisting straight up Kihyun tilts precariously on his axis. Even from where he’s standing, Hyunwoo hears Jiyong’s sharp intake of breath, and next to him, Jooheon gasps. 

Kihyun tries to pop the jump, only making two revolutions, but he’s not at all prepared to land the jump with how tilted in the air he is. He yells in pain as his right leg strikes the frozen surface at an awkward angle, and then he crumples to the ice and slides on his side until his back hits the wall. 

“Kihyun!” Jiyong’s voice rings out in the rink, the loudness of it instantly silencing everything going on around them. The whole rink stops. The music cuts. Everything freezes. “Are you okay?”

Kihyun is sitting against the rink wall, his head bowed forward. He doesn’t answer. The ice is unforgiving. Landing wrong at all is bound to injure someone to some degree. But that fall… that was just…

Kihyun shakes his head, and a hoarse sob echoes around the rink. Hyunwoo is running around the side of the ice before he realizes his feet are moving.

Jiyong gets to him first; he’s unlocked the barrier and glided out onto the ice, eyes trained solely on the fallen skater. In the distance Hyunwoo hears yelling—Yoongi, maybe—but he’s not focused on anything other than the fact that Kihyun had fallen, he’d fallen hard, and he’s not getting back up.

Hyunwoo doesn’t even think about his next actions. He’s never truly spent much time on the ice himself—he’s a dancer, not a skater. He’s decent at it, sure, but he can’t jump or spin. But he does know that one of the first rules is don’t go on the ice without skates. “Don’t you dare dirty up the ice with anything but skates,” he remembers Jiyong scolding. It’s skating 101. Going on the ice with shoes on just isn’t something people _ do _ . It’s bad and gross and just _ wrong _.

He doesn’t care. He doesn’t wait for Hoseok or Minhyuk to try to unlock the door on the rink wall and he jumps over the ledge, then hurries as fast as he can to where Kihyun is slumped against the wall, one leg outstretched and the other bent towards him. Kihyun glances up as he staggers towards him and Hyunwoo’s heart breaks when he registers the pain on Kihyun’s face. 

“Kihyun,” Jiyong is saying as Hyunwoo ungracefully skids his way over. “Kihyun, look at me. Tell me what’s hurting.”

“M-m-my knee, and my a-ankle,” Kihyun stammers, one hand gently resting on the knee of his left leg, the leg he jumps with. “God, h-hyungnim, this hurts so—”

Jiyong gently rests a hand on Kihyun’s injured limb and Kihyun jerks away from him with a yelp, and immediately bursts into tears. Hyunwoo takes his hand, allowing Kihyun to grip it like his life depends on it.

Kihyun doesn’t cry. He just doesn’t. He’s such a confident and powerful skater, and he can handle levels of pain that Hyunwoo himself is impressed with. Kihyun’s role as a parental figure of sorts has made him empathetic, and tough. Hyunwoo can count on one hand he’s seen Kihyun cry before. Seeing Kihyun in tears alerts Hyunwoo to the serious pain his love must be in.

“Shit,” Jiyong grits out, then turns to call over his shoulder to Yoongi, who stands at the rink barrier watching intently. “Yoongi, call an ambulance.”

Those four words set everything back into motion. Younger skaters gasp and murmur amongst themselves. Minhyuk and Hoseok hurry around to the edge of the rink the small group was closest to. Hyunwoo pays them no mind. He’s focused solely on Kihyun.

The younger skater is visibly sweating despite sitting on such a cold surface. His face is red and blotchy and he chews on his lips, his chest hitching every once in a while as he desperately swallows back more tears. He keeps his head down and his hand on his knee, and small whimpers of pain leave his lips, his other hand wringing and grasping at Hyunwoo’s hand.

Kihyun is strong. He’s tough. He doesn’t let things like injuries or feelings get in the way of what he wants. But Hyunwoo doesn’t think he’d be handling this any better. Kihyun is obviously in insurmountable amounts of pain but trying so hard to keep it inside. It hurts Hyunwoo’s heart as he watches his love squirm and writhe on the ice, tiny whines escaping his mouth, which is pressed into a line so firmly the edges of his lips were nearly colorless. Hyunwoo feels tears rise in his eyes at the sight, but holds them back for Kihyun’s sake.

“Ambulance is on it’s way,” Yoongi yells from the opposite end of the rink, where Seokjin is slipping his blade guards off. Over his shoulder, Hyunwoo can see Changkyun, Jungkook, Jimin and Taehyung watching with various levels of horror from the edge of the hallway. Seokjin steps onto the ice and makes his way to the group swiftly, face pinched in concern. 

“What happened? I was in the dance studio with the kids when Yoongi ran in for his phone to call an ambulance,” Seokjin questions, kneeling beside Jiyong. His gaze is calculating, trained on Kihyun like he’s trying to assess the injury, but isn’t sure where to start.

“His knees buckled going into a quadruple lutz,” Jiyong explains, worried eyes never once leaving Kihyun’s face. “He landed wrong—his knee is damaged. It might be his ACL or MCL. It was a nasty fall, Seokjin, he really hurt himself.”

Seokjin bites his lip in sympathy. Kihyun either doesn’t want to look at Seokjin or can’t bring himself to do it. Hyunwoo rests his free hand in Kihyun’s hair as a silent act of comfort, and Kihyun tightens his grip on Hyunwoo’s hand. 

“Kihyun,” Seokjin calls. “Can you hear me?”

Kihyun nods once, a sharp, crisp movement that gives away his fear to move.

“We need to get you off the ice,” Seokjin says. “Do you think you can stand?”

Kihyun shakes his head. His neck and face redden again and Hyunwoo’s gaze zeroes in on the fresh tears that slip down his face. Seokjin looks at Jiyong.

“We have to get him off somehow,” He says urgently. “We need to be careful but fast. Laying on the ice like this isn’t helping him at all.”

“I can carry him,” Hyunwoo states more than offered. He’s willing to do anything to help Kihyun at this point; seeing the love of his life in such agony is wrapping a snake around his heart and constricting it every time Kihyun whimpers or groans in pain. Seokjin and Jiyong look at each other, and then look at him. 

“Okay,” Jiyong nods. “We need to be careful and deliberate about this. I’m not sure… we’ll need to keep his leg from moving a lot. Hyunwoo, carry his upper body. Seokjin and I can handle his legs.”

Hyunwoo nods and shifts so he kneels mostly behind Kihyun, the ice beneath him freezing his knees and soaking through his pants. He tries to let go of Kihyun’s hand but Kihyun clings tight, breath speeding up.

“No, no,” Kihyun moans. Hyunwoo swallows against the lump in his throat.

“I know baby, but we’ve gotta get you off the ice,” He says, trying so hard not to let his voice shake. Kihyun needs him to be strong. “I won’t go anywhere, okay? I’ll be here the whole time.”

With a little bit more coaxing, Kihyun reluctantly lets go of Hyunwoo’s hand and allows the older to wrap his arms around his torso. He pauses, then hooks one arm under Kihyun’s knee.

“Can you get him by yourself?” Jiyong asks, and Hyunwoo nods. 

“Keep your leg still as best you can, okay Kihyun?” Seokjin sooths, then looks at Hyunwoo. “Okay, on the count of three. One, two, three…”

Hyunwoo lifts Kihyun into a bridal carry, and Jiyong and Seokjin each hold onto one of his arms. He’s not wearing skates, and the ice is slick under his feet, and he’s terrified to death of slipping and dropping Kihyun, so he’s grateful for their attempts to steady him on the ice. Minhyuk, waiting worriedly nearby, springs to his feet and opens the gate. Kihyun’s soft cries increase as Hyunwoo carries him off, but he doesn’t scream or anything, so Hyunwoo just keeps going until he gets safely off the ice and onto the floor. He sits Kihyun down on one of the benches against the wall and crouches next to him once he’s seated on the bench. He takes Kihyun’s hand again, pressing gentle kisses to each knuckle. Jiyong and Seokjin stand behind him. Kihyun still can’t bring his head up to look at anyone, and his shoulders tremble.

“Ambulance is here!” J-hope yells from all the way across the rink. Seokjin looks up.

“Tell them to come around back,” He responds, and J-hope nods and vanishes in the direction of the main entrance.

“Guys, come on, back off,” Jiyong says to the skaters, who have slowly begun to form a curious ring around Kihyun. The spray of kidss scurry away immediately after Jiyong sweeps a harsh glare around them.

J-hope comes running back around the rink and motions for Taehyung and Jungkook to help him with something. They follow him immediately and the three of them unlock and open the back entrance where an ambulance is parked, noted by the flashing red lights. Hyunwoo glances over out the open doors, and sees two or three paramedics busy pulling a gurney out of the back of the emergency vehicle. J-hope, Taehyung and Jungkook continue to hold the doors open for the paramedics, who bustle into the rink and make their way towards Kihyun. 

“Name and age?” One of the paramedics asks, directing the question at anyone who can answer him. Hyunwoo is glad he seemed to have noticed right away that Kihyun either won’t speak or physically can’t. 

“Yoo Kihyun, twenty-two,” Jiyong answers. “He landed a jump wrong. Most of his pain is in his knee, I think.” 

“What jump did he perform?” The second paramedic asks and Hyunwoo could have laughed in his face, had he not been too preoccupied with trying to keep Kihyun calm while the paramedics load him into the gurney. He seriously doubts the paramedic knows anything about skating. 

Jiyong seems to agree with Hyunwoo, because he does a poor job of hiding his skepticism as he replies to the paramedic, “A quadruple Lutz.”

It seems both of them are correct; a blank look crosses the paramedic’s face before he nods wordlessly and turns back to strapping Kihyun onto the bed. The other two paramedics have been speaking to Kihyun in hushed voices, keeping him calm, telling him it will be okay, that it will be fine. Kihyun doesn’t react to them in any way, but his hand remains firmly wrapped around Hyunwoo’s, and every so often he’ll squeeze a little harder.

Hyunwoo and Jiyong follow the gurney out of the rink. They stand by as the team of paramedics begin to load Kihyun into the ambulance, and the third one looks expectantly at Hyunwoo and Jiyong.

“Will either of you be going with him?” The paramedic asks. Hyunwoo turns to look pleadingly at Jiyong, but the older skater is already pushing him towards the ambulance.

“Go, go with him,” Jiyong ushers. “I’ll be right behind you.”

Hyunwoo doesn’t waste a second before stepping into the ambulance. The second paramedic steps in behind him and the other two close the doors before jumping into the driver and passenger seats in the front, turning on the sirens as they begin the journey to the hospital.

“Do you have a relation to him, sir?” The paramedic asks, sitting across from Hyunwoo on Kihyun’s other side. Kihyun is deadly quiet, his eyes closed, his face red and tearstained, but every once in a while his shoulders jump with a small sob. 

“He’s my fiancé,” Hyunwoo answers without hesitating, rubbing his thumb along Kihyun’s knuckles. He sees the paramedic’s lips quirk up briefly and he nods, then turns back to fiddling with medical supplies.

Kihyun opens his eyes and looks at Hyunwoo. His eyes are filled with tears and pain and desperation, and he clutches at Hyunwoo’s hand. Hyunwoo wordlessly kisses Kihyun’s knuckles and uses his free hand to smooth his hair back. No more words are exchanged the entire rest of the ride to the hospital, but not once does Hyunwoo let go of Kihyun’s hand.

* * *

Once they arrive at the hospital, the doctors awaiting their arrival transfer Kihyun to an emergency room. Before Jiyong arrives, though, they brace his knee and ankle he’s still in his damp skating attire when they take him back for an MRI and X-ray to find out what the problem is. Jiyong arrives about twenty minutes after the doctors take Kihyun away, and he joins Hyunwoo in the room he’s been instructed to wait in until the tests are done.

When they come back, about forty-five minutes later, Kihyun is pretty much doped up on morphine and is a little hazy due to the drug, but thankfully in much less pain than before. He’s having a woozy conversation with Jiyong and Hyunwoo while they wait for the MRI and x-ray results—well, he isn’t exactly participating, just kind of leaning against the bed and staring into space, occasionally offering his input at random places in the conversation. 

Eventually the doctor comes back. He’s a tall man with kind eyes named Dr. Cha, and he knocks gentle before entering the room. He gives a tight, sympathetic smile, the type of smile that’s usually given right before crushing news is about to be delivered.

“Well, unfortunately, I have some bad news,” He started, smile fading. This catches Kihyun’s attention; the skater instantly sits upright, all the haze seemingly gone, and he stares at his doctor with mild horror.

“What?” Kihyun breathes. “What happened?”

“The x-ray and MRI showed that while you don’t have any broken bones, you’ve damaged three ligaments.” Dr. Cha starts slowly, and Hyunwoo’s heart drops like a stone to his stomach. “When you landed, your leg and body wrenched in opposite directions. The force of it tore your ACL, and then the way your foot hit the ice after your body tweaked two ligaments in your ankle. I’m sorry to say this kind of injury will require surgery, physical therapy, and months of rest.”

Kihyun is staring at Dr. Cha with barely concealed horror and pain. His eyes fill with tears again and he sucks in a shaky breath, looking slowly at Jiyong, who is listening to Dr. Cha with a grim expression on his face.

“Does… does this mean I can’t skate anymore?” Kihyun’s voice is nothing more than a shallow whisper, his tone begging and pleading that the opposite is the case. “Please, tell me I can still skate!”

Hyunwoo’s heart aches as Jiyong turns to look at Kihyun, his gaze turning sad. 

“I’m so sorry, Kihyun.” Jiyong murmurs. 

Kihyun bursts into tears.

* * *

Following the ambulance’s departure from the rink and then Jiyong shortly afterwards, Yoongi and Seokjin had the executive decision to keep everyone off the ice for the rest of the night after J-hope had cleared it with the zamboni. He lets the kids go home early, but keeps the international competitors at the rink for some cooldown exercises. He knows they won’t be able to skate well after witnessing Kihyun’s fall, so he takes all of them to the dance room for some stretching and floor exercises. 

It’s deathly quiet in the studio and three hours go by without anything from Jiyong or Hyunwoo. Yoongi has to admit; it’s a little weird without Kihyun. Hoseok and Minhyuk are practicing their sit spin positions with J-hope while Jungkook, Namjoon and Hyungwon stretch their splits. Seokjin is with Jimin and Taehyung in the opposite corner of the room, going through landing motions, and Jooheon and Changkyun quietly exercise together, Changkyun holding Jooheon’s feet down while he does sit ups to stimulate his core. Yoongi’s in the middle of gently pushing down Jungkook’s left split when his phone rings in his bag across the room. 

It gets everyone’s attention, and Yoongi is up and across the room within seconds, fishing the sleek black device from the bag. His heart jumps when he registers who’s calling him.

“Jiyong?” Seokjin asks.

Yoongi nods and answers the call, then goes into the hallway and leans against the wall as Jiyong’s voice floats through the receiver.

_ “Yoongi?” _He says.

“Yeah, I’m here,” Yoongi replies, already dreading whatever Jiyong is about to tell him. “What’s the news?”

_ “He.. he tore his ACL and damaged two ligaments in his ankle,” _ Jiyong explains weakly, and Yoongi’s heart sinks. _ “He’s already lined up for two surgeries. The first is on Thursday and the second is next Wednesday. The doctor said it’ll require months of rest and physical therapy to heal properly.” _

“Jesus,” Yoongi mumbles, shaking his head. 

_ “He’s.. he’s done, Yoongi,” _ Jiyong says quietly. _ “He has to retire.” _

Yoongi had been expecting those words but it still hurts him to hear them. Yoongi’s heart aches for the younger. He knows what it’s like to be told he can’t skate anymore because of an injury. He’s sure he knows how Kihyun is feeling.

“God,” He whispers, not sure what to say. “I’m so sorry.”

_ “Yeah. He’s..” _

“Crushed?” Yoongi supplies.

_ “Devastated is more like it,” _ Jiyong says bluntly. _ “He’ll be kept here until his first surgery on Thursday. Depending on how the procedure goes, we’ll go from there in terms of treatment, but.. Yeah. He.. he can’t do it anymore. Not competitively.” _

“What should I tell the kids?” Yoongi asks.

_ “The truth,” _ Jiyong sighs. _ “I think it’ll be awhile before they see him again. He’s their teammate and friend; they deserve to know what happened. How are they?” _

“Well, I sent all our little ones home early and closed the ice,” Yoongi explains. “As you might expect, everyone older than Jungkook was less than keen to leave without hearing something about Ki, so we’ve got them all stretching and doing off-ice exercises in the dance studio. We’re just trying to keep them distracted for now.”

_ “Who all is there?” _

“Jungkook, Changkyun, Taehyung, Jimin, Jooheon, Namjoon, Hyungwon, Minhyuk, and Hoseok. Seokjin and J-hope are still here too.”

_ “Okay,” _ Jiyong says, then pauses like he’s thinking. _ “Yeah, tell them all the truth, but then send them home. Practice will resume as usual tomorrow. This has been devastating, I know, but with the Grand Prix coming up in just a few months, the placements will be out soon. This will be hard, but life goes on.” _

“Yeah, gotcha,” Yoongi says. “Thanks, Jiyong. Get some rest tonight, okay?”

_ “You too. I’m leaving here in a little while. I’ll see you tomorrow.” _

“Yeah. See you.”

And he hangs up.

Yoongi goes back into the dance room, and all movement ceases as soon as he steps inside. Eleven faces turn to him expectantly, waiting for whatever he’s going to tell them. He takes a deep breath.

“Jiyong told me that Kihyun tore his ACL and damaged two ligaments in his ankle,” He begins, and Seokjin’s face falls. “He’s going to have the first of two surgeries on Thursday, and the second will be next Wednesday. They’ll go from there.”

“Is he done?” Namjoon asks quietly.

Yoongi nods slowly. “He can’t skate anymore.”

Hoseok’s expression crumples and Minhyuk buries his face into his hands. Jooheon and Changkyun share a devastated look, and Hyungwon sits down with a sad sigh. Seokjin is staring at the floor, and J-hope brings Jungkook into a half-hug.

“Practice will continue as normal tomorrow, but tonight I want you all to go home,” Yoongi says. “The Grand Prix placements will be out soon and we need to start preparation for the season. Try not to worry about Kihyun, okay? It’s gonna suck without him, but he’ll be okay, I promise. He’s tough, right?”

All he gets in response are a few crestfallen nods.

* * *

The first surgery had gone smoothly. It was a reconstructive surgery to fix the damage of his ACL, and everything went well. The second surgery is later in the day, and although Hyunwoo knows perfectly well that Kihyun will come out of the surgery completely fine, he’s still anxious, pacing the living room of their shared apartment. Kihyun’s parents have made it clear they’re going to cover the insurance and they're on their way to Seoul, so he’s not worried about the money or the surgery. 

Kihyun has pretty much shut down since his injury a week prior.

Hyunwoo knows it won’t last forever. Kihyun has already been offered a work position in Jiyong’s rink alongside Yoongi and Seokjin and while he won’t be able to go into coaching right away, he’ll have something to do when he finishes physical therapy. 

But having his greatest passion ripped from him has damaged Kihyun more than physically. He’d announced his forced retirement quietly, but it has already made national news, and now Hyunwoo is banned from turning the television on. What really bothers Hyunwoo is Kihyun’s silence. He’s been quiet most of the time, and not super willing to get out of bed other than to use the bathroom or shower. He doesn’t speak unless Hyunwoo asks him a direct question, and even then, his answers aren’t always verbal and if they are, they’re one-word responses. Hyunwoo has to force him to eat, to shower, to move around to get his blood flowing, but try as he might to get Kihyun back, Hyunwoo feels his fiancé slipping through his fingers.

He stands in the doorway to their bedroom nearly three hours before they’re meant to even get up, watching Kihyun sleep. He has no idea if Kihyun is nervous about the surgery, or if he’s dreading it or feels anything other than neutral. Kihyun does a damn good job of hiding his feelings even when he’s not recovering from a career-ending injury, and while it amazes Hyunwoo that someone can be so unreadable, it also frustrates Hyunwoo. It makes him sad to know he can’t always tell what his soulmate is thinking. He wants to be there for Kihyun the way Kihyun is there for him. He knows it’s not really his fault. He just wants Kihyun to be okay again.

“You’re thinking too loud,” Kihyun mumbles from beneath the blankets and Hyunwoo nearly jumps out of his skin in shock, having been too lost in thought to realize Kihyun is awake and talking to him. 

He takes a minute to register that Kihyun had said more than two words to him for the first time in a week, but then he sighs and sits down on Kihyun’s edge of the bed as Kihyun wakes up more, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

“I don’t like not being able to tell what you’re thinking,” Hyunwoo confesses quietly. “It makes me feel like I’m doing a bad job of taking care of you.”

Kihyun sits up as best as he can with his entire right leg in a brace and Hyunwoo hurries to help him, stacking his pillows behind his back to allow him to lean back on something soft. Kihyun cups Hyunwoo’s cheek with his hand, staring intently into his eyes.

“You do a better job of taking care of me than I do,” He says seriously. “Between making me shower and eat and get up and walk around, you’ve been so great, Hyunwoo. If I were alone, I’m sure I’d just lay here. I’m sorry I’ve been so... distant. I’m just trying to… process it, I guess. Skating is all I am, all I was. I never thought my career would end this way.”

Hyunwoo places his hand over the one holding his cheek and leans into it, relishing in the warmth of Kihyun’s skin on his own.

“I know this is hard,” Hyunwoo mumbles. “I’ll be here every step of the way. You’ll get through it, Ki. I know you will.”

Kihyun’s expression falls, and Hyunwoo climbs onto the bed to sit next to him. Kihyun nestles into his side and Hyunwoo wraps his arms around him, and they sit that way for the next hour. 

He's so young. This isn't fair. He should have years of his career still ahead of him, and now he doesn't.

But Kihyun is strong. He’s tough and resilient and even if it’s the end of his competitive career, Hyunwoo just knows this won’t keep him off the ice forever. Beneath all the makeup and the fancy costumes and the muscles and flexibility he’s attained from years and years and years of training, Kihyun is just a boy who fell in love with the ice, and even if most people tended to forget that, Hyunwoo will always see it. Kihyun has ice in his veins; he was born for it.

It’s not over for Kihyun. Not yet. 


End file.
